This afternoon, Second Sunday of Lent, the Holy Father Leo XIV made a pastoral visit to the Roman parish of Ascensione di Nostro Signore Gesù (Ascension of Our Lord Jesus) in Quarticciolo.

Upon arrival, at 16.00, the Pope met with the children taking catechism class, young people and their families in the courtyard of the oratory. He then went to the parish hall, where he was awaited by a representation of the elderly, the sick, the poor and the disabled, with the volunteers who care for them, including some mothers of drug addicts serving prison sentences.

At 17.00, the Holy Father presided over Holy Mass in the parish church.

At the end of the Eucharistic celebration, the Pontiff met with the community of the Dehonian Fathers to whom the parish is entrusted.

The following is the homily delivered by the Pope after the proclamation of the Gospel:

Homily of the Holy Father

Dear brothers and sisters,

I am pleased to be with you and to be able to listen, together with you, to the Word of God with your entire parish community. This Sunday presents us with Abraham’s journey (cf. Gen 12:1-4) and the event of Jesus’ Transfiguration (cf. Mt 17:1-9).

Like Abraham, we can all recognize ourselves as being on a journey. Life is a journey that requires trust, it requires reliance on the Word of God who calls us and sometimes asks us to leave everything behind. We may then be tempted to flee from precariousness as though it were a vertigo that overwhelms us, whereas it is precisely from within it that we can appreciate a promise of unexpected greatness. Every day – because that is how the world reasons – we measure everything and strive to have everything under control. But in this way, we miss the opportunity to discover the real treasure, the precious pearl, as the Gospel teaches us, which God has unexpectedly hidden in our field (cf. Mt 13:44).

Abraham’s journey begins with a loss: the land and the home that hold the memories of his past. However, it will be completed in a new land and with an immense lineage, in which everything becomes a blessing. We too, if we allow ourselves to be called by faith on a journey, to risk new decisions of life and love, will cease to fear losing something, because we will feel that we are growing in a wealth that no-one can take away from us.

Jesus’ disciples also happened to face a journey, the one which would take them to Jerusalem (cfr. Lk 9:51). There, in the holy City, the Master fulfilled his mission, giving his life on the cross and becoming a blessing for all and forever. We know how much resistance Peter and all the others put up to following him. But they had to understand that one can only be a blessing by overcoming the instinct to defend oneself and by accepting what Jesus entrusts to the Eucharistic gesture: the willingness to offer his own body as bread to be eaten, to live and die in order to give life. This is what Sunday is, brothers and sisters: it is the pause along the journey in which we gather around Jesus. Jesus encourages us not to stop and not to change direction. There is no greater promise, no treasure more precious than living in order to give life!

Shortly before the day of the Transfiguration, Jesus had confided in his disciples what the destination of their journey would be, namely, his passion, death and resurrection. You will remember Peter's opposition and Jesus’ reaction when he said to him, “You are a hindrance to me; for you are not on the side of God, but of men” (Mt 16:23). And now, six days later, Jesus asks Peter, James and John to accompany him up the mountain. Those difficult words still ring in their ears; the unacceptable image of the Messiah condemned to death is still in their minds.

It is this inner darkness of the disciples that Jesus breaks when, on the mountaintop, he shows himself to them transfigured in a dazzling, unimaginable light. And in this glorious vision, Moses and Elijah also appear beside him, witnesses to the fact that in Jesus all the Scriptures are fulfilled (cf. Mt 17:2-3).

Once again, Peter becomes the spokesman of our old world and its desperate need to stop things, to control them. Rather like when we do not want a dream that we take refuge in to end. Here, however, it is not a dream, but a new world to enter: the destination of our journey, a place full of light and which has the human and divine contours of Jesus. By pitching the tents, Peter would like to stop this journey, which instead must continue to Jerusalem (cf. v. 4).

The voice that comes out of the clouds is that of the Father, and it seems to be an imploration: “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him” (v. 5). That voice resounds today for us: “Listen to Jesus!”. And I, dear friends, in your midst, want to echo that appeal, and to say to you: Please, sisters and brothers, listen to him! He journeys with us, even today, to teach us in this city the logic of unconditional love, of the abandonment of any defence that becomes an offence. Let us listen to him, let us enter into his light so as to become the light of the world, starting with the neighbourhood where we live. The whole life of the parish and its groups exists for this reason: it is a service to light, a service to joy.

After the Transfiguration on the mount, Jesus’ journey does not stop (cf. v. 9). And the Church, too, your parish, receives a mission from this Gospel. In the face of the numerous and complex problems of this territory, which loom over your days here, you are entrusted with the pedagogy of the gaze of faith, which transfigures everything with hope, putting passion, sharing and creativity into circulation as a cure for the many wounds of this neighbourhood.

I am very glad to learn that this parish community is a lively and vibrant community and, despite the grave problems of the local context, bears witness to the Gospel courageously. Under the programmatic motto “Let’s Build Community” this parish has embarked on a journey to strengthen the sense of belonging and welcome, with open arms, this parish has embarked on a journey to strengthen the sense of belonging and to welcome everyone, truly everyone with open arms! I am happy and I encourage you: continue on this path of openness to the local area and care for its wounds. And I hope that others will join you in being a leaven of goodness and justice here in Quarticciolo.

The commitment of you young people also deserves to be encouraged. In the “Magis” programme, which you presented to me a few minutes ago and which has been offered here for several years, reference is made to the “more” of which Saint Ignatius of Loyola speaks in his Spiritual Exercises. It is a stimulus for teenagers to overcome mediocrity by choosing a courageous, authentic and good life, which finds its “Magis” par excellence in Jesus Christ.

Dear brothers and sisters, you are a sign of hope. The light of the Transfiguration is already present in this community, because the Lord works here and because many of you believe in his gentle power that transforms everything. When we realize that many things around us are not right, we sometimes wonder: will what we are doing mean anything? We can succumb to the temptation of discouragement, losing our motivation and enthusiasm. Instead, it is precisely in the face of the mystery of evil that we must bear witness to our identity as Christians, as people who want to make the Kingdom of God perceptible in the places and times in which they live. This is my wish for all of you, for this parish community and for the many brothers and sisters who have not yet recognized in Jesus the true light and true joy.

Faced with everything that disfigures man and life, we continue to proclaim and bear witness to the Gospel, which transfigures and gives life. May the Holy Virgin, Mother of the Church, accompany us always and intercede for us.